Telegram-herald., 1887-08-29

sk@< wssta L-<s<y - - 1s@zi< - 1@p
lts D@sssss 1ssea241.

H1@< wssta L-<s<y - 49, nz@sik % s--s
lis D@sssss 1s.eaz4-1.
People efssE so.esx sAsz we1l- os
to result II . gEssE a&F4 battle az rs
preseaE ume. ~sold m4ny ships -
1esfreFea' W4aia tie lass ~ T. te
greAf L~i as frg e. seserss. zaerEiy.
t-s q tae pFs5.4ls lsat-Fss oi .
Es1f ssE@eeH tEs EeeLs el ga0csra
iEs1e.4sis. A.ks1zk tve 2osllle 4eegs
e 1t 4EpTe4c1 eaEb et1rr - soEas
t4arzi f5EAzlioa. tbis eogla not DC
adhered - Tor say isngtk q tiEae. and
tse 1srl.e would soon become a series
CT i1-sae1.eIt d4sls between i1eiTld-
uai saios tals Is at orce EaEafe1t
Uaaa He consider tast most. ii 1or ail.
~ tse salsc Woald aave rams. are 4
H8ul1. therefore. 11 lighlV necessary
for q casta14 % have perfeeI eoasFcl
over the movements cf his sLiD to pre-
Veat Ger beng Fai4Med By an enemy.
A Eae 5stset ~ tEe sct9a the tcrreao
boa1s would pTcta1ly saEs 4 very ae-
tfe part. aid. uENl e1leFaain4tad. -
t1sy csrtalaig aoula b. in time. would
ea gage zrekt attention and ce effective
IN sInkaz sew sAiBs. Il may be
safely concluded that every ship would
D. ste2miag fast during TIE action. tais
beiaE necessary % avoid being RANGED.
% eet lnlo favorable positions for dis
charging tcrpedoes shd . elude the
nre u ~ enemy. Heavy aun ire
would, % eour-s Be maintained from
the commeneemeut of the Action. sad
those snlps whose engines get disabled
nom this cause would speedily bs
rammed; and II this point We consider
that great loss Of life would take place,
Tor the reason that the boats OF a
ship. being always exposed 70
The machine gun fire. would st
an early stage OF the action DC
rid1led and shattered with shot. and
ia the Incredibly short time in which
= ship sinks after being rammed il
would Dc impossible for The crew to i'm
proYise other means % save
themselves from drowning No steps
seem yet 10 hzye been taken bv our
Admiralss with a view Of providing
Tor this eontlngency. Il has been sug-
gested that q hospital ship bearing the
Geneva cross should accompany a fleet
iato action 20 receive the wounded.
We would make a further suggestion
namely. that this ship should be pro-
ylted With fast steaIning boats. pecu-
lariy marked 70 show their pacific
nature. which would proceed to the as
sistauce OF a single ship. Bv shis
means. a number Of men might be
saved who would otherwise certainly
&c drowned. II j. not probable that
the loss of life from gun FIRE would be
large, a. rrcat part of the crew Of an
irouclad woeld be under water, the
rest being insisla the armored partition
OF the ship. Few ships would be able
% get into favorable positions for dis
charging Whitehead torpedoes from
their tubes; even IL they did so, the
course Of one of these machines Is so
erratic when discharged from a ship in
motion that il would in nearly every
case miss its mark The time for the
use of Whiteheads would be from the
torpedo boats at the commencement of
the fight.
To sum up, it is the opinion OF many
naval men Of authority that modern
naval battle would only occupy one
half the time Of fight in the old Ira
falgar days; that half the ships en-
ployed would be sunk. and that most
of the remainder would be so bat
tered as 70 be unfit for further service
for months To come.-Ck Chambers Josr-
nal